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The Australian government will be offering money to refugees in Manus who agree to return to their home countries as it rushes to shut down the detention centre. While most of the refugees have refused to stay in PNG, Australia has promised to give each refugee $25,000 [US$19,600] if they agree to return to their country of origin. Last year, Papua New Guinea’s Supreme Court resounded global protests when it ruled the detention centre breached human rights and ordered its closure.

Fewer candidates are set to contest the Tonga general election next month compared with 2014. That year 105 stood for the 17 seats open to members of the general public, but just 86 are to stand on 16 November. Fifteen of the candidates are women.

Our weather and climate can impact our public health in the Pacific region: more rain can lead to higher chances of mosquitos and the illnesses they bring, less rain can lead to hygiene problems leading to possible illnesses. And on it goes. Being several steps ahead of the possible health impacts from our weather and climate is the Third Pacific Islands Climate Outlook Forum (P.I.C.O.F-3) held in Samoa last week.

The Cook Islands’ controversial graduation from Official Development Assistance (ODA) has been delayed until 2018, due to the absence of adequate data to support it. And last week at USP, Financial Secretary Garth Henderson and former IMF and Australian Bureau of Statistics member Geoff Robertson discussed why they believed the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) incorrectly assessed the case they made for the country’s graduation.

Confusion and chaos were the order of the day as schoolchildren were left stranded, buses ran late and empty, and classrooms recorded low attendance after Government rolled out its eTransport initiative yesterday. Fiji Teachers Union general secretary Agni Deo Singh said the roll out should have been better co-ordinated.

The alien workers who claimed to be victims of a foreign labor scam lied about their credentials, defense lawyers said Monday, the first day of trial in federal court. According to prosecution, the victims were recruited in Bangladesh and promised employment in the U.S. as painters, welders, auto body repairer, drivers and die-cast makers.

A decision has been reached in Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron's Vatican trial, Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes said Monday, but it is still awaiting the judges' signatures. Tony Diaz, director of communications for the Archdiocese of Agana, said the decision — known as a sentence — has three elements. The first is the specific charge, the second is the specific verdict — guilty, not guilty or not proven, and the third is the penalty.

In September Ambae volcano started to wake up and the VMGD raised the Volcanic Alert Level for the volcano to Level 3. It was not clear how the eruption would develop. The volcano then entered in to an explosive phase, building a tuff cone in the lake. Some of the larger events generated tall eruption columns above the island and local ash falls. This was expected activity, based on the historic activity seen at this volcano.

Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s official vehicle and business interest in Mendi, Southern Highlands Province, were targets of a rampaging crowd on Saturday afternoon. The Toyota LandCruiser V8 vehicle was stolen, and construction and mining logistics company Wildcat Construction base looted and torched. Another company South West Air airport hangar was ransacked although its fleet of fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft had been moved elsewhere earlier.

Representative Angel Demapan on Wednesday announced his intention to run as the Republican Party candidate against incumbent U.S. Congressman Gregorio Camacho Kilili Sablan who caucuses with U.S. Democrats. Demapan, 35, declared his candidacy in the Napu Room of PIC which was jam-packed with his supporters and friends, including Senate President Arnold Palacios, Speaker Ralph Demapan and Sen. Sixto Igisomar.

Pacific Islands Report is a nonprofit news publication of the Pacific Islands Development Program at the East-West Center in Honolulu, Hawai‘i. Offered as a free service to readers, PIR provides an edited digest of news, commentary and analysis from across the Pacific Islands region, Monday - Friday.